Firearm.



PATENTED DEC. 19, 1905.

T. G. JOHNSON.

FIREARM.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 13, 1903.

UNITE El ST ATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS C. JOHNSON, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO WIN- CHESTER REPEATING ARMS 00., OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A

CORPORATION.

FIREARM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 19, 1905.

Application filed November 13, 1903. Serial No. 131,032-

and the figures of reference marked thereon,

to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specification, and represent, in-

Figure 1, a broken view, partly in side elevation and partly in vertical central section, of a gun provided with my invention; Fig. 2, a detached side view of one form of frictionbrake which I may employ; Fig. 3, a view thereof in rear elevation.

1 My invention relates to an improvement in firearms, the object being to provide simple and effective means for reducing the shock of recoil in that class of firearms having non-recoliling as distinguished from recoiling barre s.

With these ends in view my invention consists in a firearm having certain details of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings I have shown my invention as applied to a gun provided with what is known as a balanced breech-block or breech-closure 2, which has a long forwardlyprojecting balancing extension 3. This breech-block belongs to that class of breechblocks which are not positively locked for the purpose of taking the shock of recoil, but which are made to contain a quantity of metal proportioned to the weight of the bullet and its velocity, so that the shockof recoil will be absorbed by the aggregate mass of the breechblock, which, in a sense, therefore, balances the recoil. For that reason breech-blocks of this type are called balanced breech-blocks to distinguish them from positively-locked breech-blocks, which are the more generally employed. Now in order to assist such a balanced breech-block to take the recoil I provide a friction-brake, which may take a va' riety of forms, according to the dictation of circumstances, but which in this particular case has taken the form of a conical frictionsleeve 4, split throughout its length by a slot 5, and having its expansibility further increased by slots 6, which do not extend throughout its length. This sleeve is mounted upon the forward end of a guide-rod 7, provided for guiding the balancing extension 3, located underneath the non-recoiling barrel 8 and rigidly secured at its rear end in a recoiltaking lug 9, depending from the rear end thereof, as more fully shown and described in my prior patent, No. 720,698, granted February 17, 1903. The balancing extension 3 is formed with a lon sprin -chamber 10, receiving a breech-block-closing spring 11, which encircles the said rod, which extends forward through the said chamber. At its forward end the said spring impinges against ther'ear end of the said friction-sleeve 4, which is located in a conical brake-chamber 12, forming an extension of the forward end of the springchamber 10. v

For manually opening the gun, which is necessary for the introduction of the first cartridge into the gun-barrel, this gun is furnished with a plunger13, providedat its forward end with an operating-button 14c, mounted in the fore-stock tip 15, adapted at its inner end to engage with a portion of the forward end of the balancing extension 3 and provided with a spring 16, which pushes it forward into its normal position after its operation for manually opening the gun, all as fully described in my prior patent above referred to.

When the gun is fired and the breech-block recoils, the tapering walls of the conical chamber 12 ride over the side walls of the sleeve 4 and compress the same and cause it to take a firm grip upon the guide-rod 7. In this connection it may be mentioned that the sleeve is constructed so that it is slightly expanded when applied to the rod in thefirst place. The friction-sleeve is now dragged, so to speak, rearward with the balancing-extension and over the rod 7 and materially assists the balancing extension 3 in reducing the shock of recoil. It constitutes a steady drag on the breech-block and prevents the same from being thrown rearward with undue force. When the breech-block recoils, the breech-block-closing spring 11 is placed under tension for returning the breech-block to its closed position, and it not only has to move the weight of the breech-block 2 and its balancing extension 3, but also must overcome the friction of the sleeve 4 upon the rod 7 as the sleeve is pushed forward by the spring over the rod.

IOE

In View of the modifications which may obviously be made I would have it understood that I do not limit myself to the exact construction shown, but hold myself at liberty to make such departures therefrom as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an automatic firearm, the combination with a non-recoiling barrel, of a balanced breech-block having a forwardly-projecting extension formed with a spring-chamber and with a brake-chamber, a forwardly-projecting stationary rod extending into the said spring and brake-chambers, a breech-block-closing spring located in the said spring-chamber and encircling the said rod, and a friction-brake applied to the said rod and located in the said brake-chamber the walls of which engage with it and cause it to coact with the rod in retarding the opening movement of the breechblock at the time of recoil.

2. In an automatic firearm, the combination with a non-recoiling barrel, of a balanced breech-block having a forwardly-projecting extension formed with a spring-chamber and with a brake-chamber located at the forward end of the said spring-chamber, a forwardlyprojecting stationary rod extending into the said chambers, a breech-block-closing spring located in the said spring-chamber and encircling the said rod, and a friction-brake applied to the said rod and located in the said brake chamber the walls of which engage with it and cause it to coact with the rod in retarding the opening movement of the breechblock at the time of recoil.

3. In an automatic firearm, the combination with a non-recoiling barrel, of a balanced breech-block having a forwardly-projecting extension formed with a spring-chamber an with a conical brake-chamber, a forwardlyprojecting stationary rod extending into the said chambers, a breech-block-closing spring located in the said spring-chamber and encircling the said rod, and a conical friction-brake applied to the said rod and located in the said brake-chamber the tapering walls of which engage with it and cause it to coact with the rod in retarding the opening movement of the breech-block at the time of recoil.

I. In an automatic firearm, the combination with a non recoiling barrel, of a balanced breech-block having a forwardly-projecting extension formed with a spring-chamber and with a brake-chamber, a forwardly-projecting stationary rod extending into the said chambers and mounted at its rear end in a lug depending from the barrel, a breech-blockclosing spring located in the said springchamber and encircling the said rod, and a friction-brake applied to the said rod and located in the said brake-chamber the walls of which engage with it and cause it to coact with the said rod in retarding the opening movement of the breech-block at the time of recoil.

5. In an automatic firearm, the combination with a non-recoiling barrel having a depending recoil-taking lug, of a balanced breechblock having a forward extension, a stationary rod mounted in the said lug and extending forward into the said extension, a breechblock-closing spring located in the said extension and encircling the said rod, and a friction-brake mounted upon the said rod and operated by the said breech-block to retard the opening movement of the breech-block and thus reduce the shock of recoil.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

THOMAS C. JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

DANIEL H. VEADER, WM. J. DIGNAU. 

